Back in June, with the official presentation of Windows Phone 8, it was announced that Huawei will join Microsoft'sWindows Phone camp as well and at that time it was even said, that the first devices could be expected end of 2012. Now, only one month too late (which isn't bad at all), Huawei officially unveiled its first Windows Phone 8 smartphone, the Huawei Ascend W1. The Ascend W1 is 10.15 mm thin and features a 4" IPS LCD 480 x 800 touchscreen with OGS Technology. It's powered by the high-end Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 MSM8230 dual-core CPU at 1.2 GHz and an Adreno 305 GPU. With a 1950 mAh battery, the Ascend W1 has 470 hours of standby time, the longest among all smartphones in its class.

It features a visually iconic design inspired by a tropical island and comes in an array of bold colors including blue, red, black and white. The Ascend W1 is a smart and stylish alternative for consumers looking for great technology at a price that is right. The Huawei Ascend W1 has a low reflective IPS LCD display with full lamination technology, which provides brilliant visibility under any lighting condition. The Windows Phone 8 Start screen lets users customize and pin Live Tiles with topics of personal interest, providing real-time updates that are uniquely theirs. Additionally, a dynamic lock screen allows users to select the photos or updates most important to them and have them ready at a glance, even when the phone is locked.

The Huawei Ascend W1 will be available in China and Russia from January 2013, with Western Europe, Middle East, USA and other selected countries to follow.